Use Native Species in Your Garden

How much lawn do you really need and use? Do you really want to continue providing the very rich home that lawns provide for Japanese beetles to prosper in? Is there another choice? YES–and it will establish an everchanging, colorful, and diverse system that will provide nourishment and shelter for the birds that feed on the insects, the butterflies that pollinate, and the small wildlife that are all part of the balance of a healthy ecosystem.

Misguided use of poisonous pesticides and herbicides are a danger to our children, to our sources of clean water, and to the biodiversity of our soil that produces healthy growth. Learn to use the native species of plants that have evolved in concert with the local environment and thus more easily flourish. More and more nurseries are supplying a diverse selection to choose from and advice in planting them. Remember though–everything grows better within a supporting system so plan rather than just dig a hole and plunk one plant into it.